Beasts of Burden: Occupied Territory #3

Beasts of Burden: Occupied Territory #3

Dark Horse Comics 2021

Written by Evan Dorkin & Sarah Dyer

Illustrated by Benjamin Dewey

Flatting by Jason Lusk

Lettered by Nate Piekos of Blambot

This eight-time Eisner Award-winning comic book series blending fantasy and humor returns in a historical adventure blending Japanese and Western occult! After bumping into an army of badass Shiba Inus; Emrys and his team of canine companions come face-to-face with a vicious red Oni demon ready for a bowser battle!

When a book wins eight Eisner Awards you know that it is something extraordinary and just reading this arc will send you running the previous arcs. Also that this is new reader friendly and we see how the history of Emry and his human companion has evolved over tie is really just an added bonus but it does give you all the information you need to fully enjoy this arc all on its own. I adore the introduction of the mystical Yokai that make up the Council. Some like the Kitsune are familiar while others are not so that we are introduced to them in this way they generate interest and an engagement factor that one doesn’t expect. Look them up see what and who they represent that sort of engagement and education is what makes this so darn special.

This really is beautifully told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exceptionally well. I am so incredibly impressed with how we see the character development through the dialogue, the character interaction as well as how they act and react to the situations and circumstances that they encounter. While the Council may not all speak through the addition of the visual we see such characterisation here that really is quite remarkable. The pacing is superb and as it takes us through the pages revealing more and more of the story as well as the twists & turns along the way we’re pulled deeper and deeper into the book.

How we see this structured and how the layers within continue to grow, evolve and strengthen is really remarkable. Though Mullins is one of my new favourite characters so i’ll be gutted should he go. How we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow as well as how it moves the story forward is brilliantly achieved.

The interiors here are utterly fantastic. The linework that we see is dynamic, strong and with its varying weights and techniques being utilised to bring out this level and quality of detail work is beyond brilliantly rendered. How we see background utilised throughout is spectacular to see as it really enhances the moments and then to see them work within the composition of the panels to bring depth perception, sense of scale and that overall sense of size and scope to the story is greatly achieved. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a really extraordinary eye for storytelling. The colour work is equally as brilliant to see. The various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work is utterly gorgeous and brilliantly rendered as it showcases such an understanding of how colour works.

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The creativity and imagination on display here is fantastic! The animals and creatures looking as real and authentic as possible is mind blowing. This is simply one of the more charming and endearing series to be published today. Not only is this intelligently written and gorgeously illustrated but the engagement and education factors that we see within these pages really makes this perfect for nearly every person regardless of age or gender. Rarely does such a nearly perfect book exist and this is as close as you are going to get.